Now when I throw the 172 champion Monarch with my backhand, (with a level release) it quickly starts curving to the left and quickly starts tipping over with it's left side angling down. Even if I throw it with the left side up and right (toward me) side down (anhyzer?) it still quickly turns and dips to the left. The Monarch is supposed to be an understable beginner driver yet when I throw it, it behaves more like what I would call an overstable disc with high fade.

So what are some likely culprits at play here that are really magnified when I throw the Monarch (faster disc 10, 5, -4, 1)? Not throwing fast enough, not enough wrist snap, poorly aligned follow through? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Hi. At that power i'd stick to only putters because they are good for flight line and form wise and teach you the fastest. The Monarch is too fast. At those distances form needs fixing to gain more distance.

Flat shots need running on the center line of the tee and planting each step on the center line. Anhyzer needs running from rear right to front left with the plant step hitting the ground to the left of the line you're running on. Hyzer is the mirror of that.

I don't know a whole lot but from your description it seems pretty clear that you just aren't developing enough power. The big tell is that you are getting essentially the same distance with a Shark as you are with a Leopard and a Valkyrie. I was told a while back by an experienced player that when going up in the speed rating of a disc does not give you more distance, then you've found the speed rating you should stick to until your technique improves more. A disc I'll suggest to you is a Spyder, preferably in Champion plastic around 175 grams. It's a midrange but it has a really thin rim on it so you can get max speed on the disc. With a little spin it also holds whatever line you release it on which lets you really analyze your throwing. Later, it will be your utility disc for accurate shots out to 200-225 feet or so and for those times when you have to hook the disc hard to get around an obstacle. The Shark is a similar disc, but the one I had would turn a bit if I threw it hard. The Spyder won't (at least not with my arm) and it also doesn't mind being tossed lightly either.

The Monarch should be listed as an extremely difficult disc to throw. It takes a great deal of skill and practice to get it to fly the way it is intended to fly. If I were you, I'd put it away for now, and bring it out from time to time as you improve. Use it as a benchmark disc, to track your progress over time.

I can get the Monarch airborne if thrown with a decent anhyzer or a big sidearm. It still behaves quite overstable for me.

I picked one of these up in the first place based on Innova's charts (before I knew better), as it's over on the beginner/low power side of things and it read "glide for beginners, turn for power throwers". Nothing beginner about this disc at all IMO.

Even my Wraith is easier to throw than the Monarch. (Actually don't use either during rounds, but I do practice with the Wraith out on the field. The Monarch has been relegated to one or two throws a week just to see what happens)